Diagnosis and surgical treatment of renal hyperparathyroidism

Forty-three patients with chronic renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism underwent parathyroid surgery. The first 20 patients were submitted to subtotal parathyroidectomy, and the last 23 patients underwent total parathyroidectomy and parathyroid autotransplantation in the forearm. Non-invasive image diagnosis, CT, ultrasonography and scintigraphy are valuable for 1) making a definite diagnosis of secondary hyperparathyroidism, 2) locating the tumor 3) determining the effectiveness of treatment, and 4) differentially diagnosing thyroid tumors. For surgical treatment, we recommend total parathyroidectomy and autotransplantation in the forearm because the second operation for recurrence may be done more safely and easily than after subtotal parathyroidectomy.     

Anesthesia and postoperative recovery for parathyroid gland surgery

Anesthesia for surgery of primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) usually concerns asymptomatic elderly women with moderate hypercalcemia. Cardiovascular repercussions of the endocrine disorder are possible, but they are not frequent except for hypertension. Hyperparathyroid crisis is a life-threatening condition with severe hypercalcemia. Intravenous diphosphonates are very effective drugs to control hypercalcemia. The improvement is transient but allows curative parathyroidectomy to be performed with a minimal risk of cardiac arrhythmias. Anesthesia for surgery of secondary HPT concerns patients with chronic renal failure treated by hemodialysis. Cardiovascular disease is frequent and aggravated by the endocrine disorder. In patients with marked aortic stenosis or severe left ventricular dysfunction, parathyroidectomy should be performed by cervicotomy under local anesthesia. Hyperparathyroidism may persist after renal transplantation (tertiary HPT): in this case cardiovascular disease is minimal and the hypercalcemia is moderate. Parathyroidectomy is usually performed by cervicotomy under general anesthesia. Sternotomy is required in the case of an abnormal mediastinal location of a gland. An interaction between myorelaxants and hyperparathyroidism has been observed. Total blood calcium must be systematically assayed postoperatively because postoperative hypocalcemia is constant. Hypocalcemia is moderate in primary and tertiary HPT, due to transient functional hypoparathyroidism, with lowest observed the 2nd or 3rd postoperative day. Hypocalcemia should not be treated when asymptomatic because it resolutes on the 4th or 5th postoperative day. Intravenous calcium infusion may be necessary for 1 or 2 days, if serum calcium is below 1.9 mmol per liter with symptoms of tetany. Persistent hypocalcemia is due to an hungry bone syndrome or organic hypoparathyroidism that should be treated by oral vitamin D and calcium. In secondary HPT, hypocalcemia is early, marked and asymptomatic. Treatment must often be started on the 6th postoperative hour by intravenous calcium infusion, followed by oral vitamin D and calcium. The absence of postoperative hypocalcemia indicate incomplete removal of all abnormal parathyroid tissue. At the third postoperative day, a second cervicotomy may be performed to complete the neck exploration.     

Parathyroid pathology in hyperparathyroidism secondary to chronic renal failure

Weights and histopathological changes in parathyroid glands were evaluated in relation to clinical and biochemical parameters in 42 patients who underwent parathyroidectomy for hyperparathyroidism (HPT) secondary to chronic renal failure. There was a positive relation (r = 0.71, p less than 0.01) between duration of renal insufficiency and total parathyroid glandular weight. The glandular weight was also closely related to the serum levels of parathyroid hormone (r = 0.67, p less than 0.01). No correlation was found between total parathyroid glandular weight or histopathological findings and clinical symptoms, serum levels of calcium, phosphate, alkaline phosphatases, calcium X phosphorus product or radiological evidence of bone disease. The enlargement of the glands was mostly uniform in the individual patient and all patients showed multiple gland involvement. This indicates that when parathyroid surgery is performed in patients with uraemia and secondary HPT, a radical approach, i.e. total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation or subtotal parathyroidectomy, should always be used. In smaller glands only diffuse hyperplasia of parenchymal cells was generally found; fat cells were present in near-normal amounts. With increasing glandular weight, fat cells were more sparse and nodularity was common. In general, the proportion of oxyphil cells increased parallel with the total glandular weight, suggesting that this cell type is sensitive to stimulation. As a group, patients undergoing conservative renal treatment had suffered longer with renal disease, had larger parathyroid glands with more nodularity, and had more oxyphil cells than those undergoing parathyroidectomy while on haemodialysis.     

甲状旁腺全切除自体前臂移植术治疗肾功能不全继发性甲状旁腺功能亢进

目的:研究甲状旁腺全切除(PTX)自体前臂移植术治疗慢性肾功能衰竭继发性甲状旁腺功能亢进(SHPT)的疗效和安全性。方法:回顾性分析2011年12月—2015年12月接受PTX自体前臂移植的30例慢性肾功能衰竭终末期并SHPT患者的临床资料,观察患者术后临床症状改善情况、血清全段甲状旁腺激素(iPTH)、钙、磷及钙磷乘积的变化,以及术后并发症与复发情况。结果:所有患者均手术成功。术后患者临床症状均明显改善;血清iPTH、钙、磷及钙磷乘积水平均较术前明显降低(均P0.05)。12例患者出现一过性喉返神经损伤,均自行好转。术后8例(2.7%)复发,7例再次手术后症状缓解。结论:PTX自体前臂移植术是治疗慢性肾功能衰竭SHPT的一种安全有效的方法。     

Study of intact (1-84) parathyroid hormone secretion in patients undergoing parathyroidectomy

Patterns of intact (1-84) parathyroid hormone (intact PTH) elimination and subsequent recovery of parathyroid function were studied in 12 patients undergoing parathyroidectomy. Nine patients had primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT), with single gland disease in 6 and multiple gland disease in 3. Two patients had subtotal parathyroidectomy for HPT secondary to chronic renal failure and 1 underwent excision of a hyperfunctioning parathyroid autograft. Using a sensitive 2-site immunochemiluminometric assay, serum intact PTH levels were measured preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively. A dual phase pattern of hormone clearance was found in 10 of the 12 patients, including the patient undergoing autograft excision. A monoexponential clearance pattern was seen in the remaining 2 patients, both of whom had subtotal parathyroidectomies for multiple gland disease. In the patients with primary HPT due to single gland disease, the early phase of intact PTH clearance had a half-life (T1/2) of 3.3 (+/- standard deviation 0.9) minutes and a late T1/2 of 96.4 (+/- standard deviation 92.7) minutes. Calculation of decay curves and half-lives for the patients undergoing subtotal parathyroidectomy was more difficult because of the inherent uncertainty in determining time zero. Nevertheless, in all but 2 patients, the clearance pattern was biexponential and the T1/2 measurements were very similar to those encountered in patients with single-gland disease. In the 2 patients with monoexponential clearance, the T1/2 figures were 86.7 minutes and 26.7 minutes, respectively. In the patients undergoing parathyroidectomy for primary HPT, levels of intact PTH were lowest at 1-3 hours after surgery, recovering to normal in the majority of patients by 18-40 hours.     

Calciphylaxis in a hemodialysis patient: appearance after parathyroidectomy during a psoriatic flare.

Chronic renal failure patients are prone to soft tissue calcifications. A phenomenon of acute ischemic skin necrosis and dermohypodermic arteriolar medial calcification has been described recently in patients with chronic renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism (HPT). This phenomenon, termed calciphylaxis, occurs in response to certain factors, the most important of which appears to be an elevated blood calcium-phosphate product. Accordingly, parathyroidectomy in addition to normalization of calcium-phosphate product has been proposed as the only effective therapeutic approach for this condition. We describe a case of chronic renal failure with severe secondary HPT in which the patient developed calciphylaxis 4 days after the appearance of a psoriatic flare. Four months before, a subtotal parathyroidectomy was performed for severe HPT and at the time the ulcerations appeared, blood calcium-phosphate product was correct. Etiological and physiopathological aspects of calciphylaxis are discussed.     

Parathyroid autotransplantation. An investigation of parathyroid autograft function

During a four-year period, 27 patients underwent total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation of parathyroid tissue to the forearm. In order to minimize the risk of persistent or recurrent hyperparathyroidism (HPT), a routine thymic resection and a wide excision of fat tissue around the parathyroids was performed to ensure excision of possible supernumerary glands or rudimentary parathyroid tissue. The indications for operation were HPT secondary to chronic renal failure in 24 patients (22 of whom had hypercalcaemia) and persistent or recurrent primary HPT in 2 cases. One further patient, who had a multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type I, underwent this procedure at the primary parathyroid operation. Preoperative hypercalcaemia was reversed in all patients but three during the first postoperative days, concomitantly with a fall in the parathyroid hormone (PTH) level. Fourteen patients showed marked hypocalcaemia postoperatively, necessitating calcium or vitamin D supplementation. This medication could later be discontinued in all of them. Thirteen patients, including two of those with primary HPT, never required any supplemental therapy. Survival of the grafts was documented by several observations. In all patients normal serum calcium values were being maintained without supplemental therapy at follow-up. During induced hypocalcaemia a PTH secretory response was demonstrated in all eight studied patients with a gradient between the grafted and non-grafted arm. In two patients in whom the grafts were examined histologically 19 and 28 months after the transplantation, viable parathyroid tissue was observed. In the initial part of the study excised tissue was cryopreserved. Since persistent hypocalcaemia did not occur in our patients, we have now abandoned this safety precaution. Thus, total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation of parathyroid tissue is a valuable method for restoring long-term parathyroid function in patients with secondary HPT and uraemia. It also appears of value in selected cases of primary HPT.     

Hormone secreting ability in patients with parathyroid autograft

In order to elucidate the function of parathyroid autograft, we determined the plasma parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels in the blood from cubital veins in two patients who had parathyroid autotransplantation after total parathyroidectomy. The first patient with chronic renal failure had been treated by hemodialysis for the past nine years and showed marked symptoms due to secondary hyperparathyroidism for five years. The second patient showed an evidence of recurrence of parathyroid cancer three years after the initial operation carried out elsewhere. The parathyroid tissue of 80 mg was sliced into 25 pieces and transplanted into separate pockets in one of the brachioradial muscles of the forearm. These patients showed an increase in plasma PTH levels two weeks after surgery. Plasma calcium level returned to the normal range three months after operation. Artificial hypocalcemia was induced by an injection of porcine calcitonin at ten months after surgery and a reserve of PTH secretion was tested. An increase of plasma C-PTH and N-PTH levels were recognized in the two patients as well as in the normal healthy volunteers. It was shown that parathyroid autograft has sufficient function to maintain normocalcemia and a reserve of function to respond against an artificially induced hypocalcemia at the tenth month after autografting.     

Surgical Treatment of Hyperparathyroidism After Kidney Transplant

Chronic renal impairment is often associated with complex bone disorders. Improvement of secondary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) is expected after kidney transplant (KT) if the glomerular filtration rate is normalized.Patients and MethodsThere were 888 KTs performed between 1996 and 2017 at our department. A total of 558 general patients have been operated on for HPT during the same period. The 2 populations had a common part: out of the 558, a total of 69 (12.4%) were in end-stage renal failure when operated on because of secondary HPT. That also means that 7.8% of all KTs were associated with HPT. Retrospective, single-center analysis was performed using the patients' medical records. The aim of our study was to analyze the results of parathyroidectomies after KT.ResultsParathyroid surgery was performed on 19 patients (2.14%) because of HPT after KT. The applied surgical technique was total parathyroidectomy with autotransplant in 6 cases, subtotal parathyroidectomy in 3 cases, and selective parathyroidectomy in 10 cases. In all cases, histology revealed benign disease. Complications were observed in 10 cases (52%); there were 6 cases of postoperative hypocalcaemia (31.58%), 1 case of transient laryngeal recurrent nerve paresis (5.26%), and 6 cases of recurrent HPT (31.58%).SummaryThe first step of HPT management is calcimimetic drug treatment. It is essential to prevent possible complications with regular laboratory monitoring. If the proper conservative therapy is refractory or severe in complications, surgery should be chosen. If the patient is already waiting for a KT, it is worth performing the parathyroid surgery before KT. Close collaboration with endocrinologists and nephrologists is needed to achieve successful therapy.     

Changing trends for surgery in elderly patients with hyperparathyroidism at a single institution

BACKGROUND: Many elderly patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (1HPT), which increases in incidence with age and is frequently asymptomatic, are often not referred for surgery. However, the development of minimally invasive techniques has facilitated complex operations even in the elderly. Therefore, we sought to delineate the changes in the trends for surgical referral at our institution for patients over 70 years of age with 1HPT. METHODS: From January 1990 to March 2004, 422 patients underwent surgery for 1HPT at our institution. Of these, 98 were 70 years or older. In 2001, we introduced minimally invasive radioguided parathyroidectomy (MIRP). Patients were then analyzed based upon the availability of this technology (pre-MIRP era 1990-2000, and MIRP era 2001-2004). RESULTS: In the MIRP era, more elderly patients were referred for surgery when compared to the pre-MIRP era (30% versus 18%, P = 0.001). On average, 18 elderly patients/year had parathyroid surgery in the MIRP era compared to only 4 elderly patients/year pre-MIRP, representing a 4.5-fold increase. Furthermore, there were significantly more patients undergoing parathyroidectomy who were asymptomatic from 1HPT during the MIRP era (14% versus 2%, P < 0.001). Importantly, patients who underwent surgery in the MIRP era had a higher cure rate, lower complication rate, and shorter hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: Since the introduction of MIRP at our institution, there has been an increase in the number of elderly patients with 1HPT referred for surgery as well as the proportion with only mild disease. Furthermore, there have been improvements in elderly patient outcomes during this time. MIRP is one of several factors that have led to an increase in elderly patients undergoing surgery for 1HPT.     

Parathyroid Cryopreservation after Parathyroidectomy: A Worthwhile Practice?

Background

Parathyroid cryopreservation is often utilized for patients having parathyroidectomy. This allows for future autotransplantation if a patient becomes permanently hypocalcemic after surgery. However, the practice of cryopreservation is costly and time-consuming, while the success rate of delayed autotransplantation is highly variable. We sought to determine the rate and outcomes of parathyroid cryopreservation and delayed autotransplantation at our institution to further evaluate its utility.

Methods

At our institution, 2,083 parathyroidectomies for hyperparathyroidism (HPT) were performed from 2001 to 2010. Of these, parathyroid cryopreservation was utilized in 442 patients (21 %). Patient demographics, preoperative diagnoses, and other characteristics were analyzed, as well as the rate and success of delayed autotransplantation.

Results

Of the 442 patients with cryopreservation, the mean age was 55 ± 1 years and 313 (70.8 %) were female. A total of 308 (70 %) had primary HPT, 46 (10 %) had secondary HPT, and 88 (20 %) had tertiary HPT. Delayed autotransplantation of cryopreserved parathyroid tissue was used in 4 (1 %) patients at an average time of 9 ± 4 months after initial surgery. Three of the 4 patients remained hypoparathyroid after this procedure. The single cured patient underwent the procedure only 4 days after the initial parathyroidectomy.

Conclusions

Although cryopreservation was used in over one-fifth of patients undergoing parathyroidectomy, the need for parathyroid reimplantation was very low (1 %). Furthermore, the success rate of parathyroid autotransplantation was poor in these patients. Therefore, the continued practice of parathyroid cryopreservation is questionable.     

Parathyroid autografts—morphology and function: Six years' experience with parathyroid autotransplantation in uremic patients

Recurrence of hyperparathyroidism (HPT) following total parathyroidectomy and autotransplantation (APTX) has been reported before. However, no data about the time interval between grafting and relapse and about morphology were given. Only 1 case of primary hyperparathyroidism with APTX has been extensively analyzed. We have performed autotransplantation in 42 patients with HPT due to chronic renal failure. Implanted parathyroid tissue showed typical chief cell hyperplasia. Within 4–33 months, 6 patients developed recurrent HPT with serum iPTH levels being highest in venous blood of the grafted arm. Grafts had to be removed. Although only 20–40 mg of parathyroid tissue had been implanted, removed grafts weighed from 0.9 to 3.1 g. Explanted grafts were examined by light and electron microscopy. The size and DNA content of nuclei were determined. In all cases the explanted material showed a distinct invasive growth into the adjacent connective tissue and muscles and in 2 cases mitotic figures were demonstrated, a finding resembling malignant neoplasia of the parathyroid. From our clinical and morphological observations we draw the following conclusions:

1. Surgical treatment of renal hyperparathyroidism by PTX + Auto-TX unforeseeably may result in very accelerated growth of grafted tissue.
2. Because of invasive growth there exists the risk of uncontrolled spread of parathyroid tissue.
3. Graft removal may turn out to be difficult and possibly necessitate repeated and extensive surgery.
4. Before the observed phenomenon is totally understood, we no longer recommend PTX + Auto-TX as an alternative to subtotal PTX in the surgical treatment of renal hyperparathyroidism.

     

Estimated weight of the residual parathyroid gland after parathyroidectomy using plasma levels of the parathyroid hormone

The possibility of estimating the total weight of the parathyroid glands based on the plasma concentration of the parathyroid hormone (PTH) would be of great help when searching for the parathyroid glands during surgery on patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism. Thus, we studied the relationship between the levels of carboxylterminal PTH (C-PTH), midportion PTH (M-PTH) and intact PTH, and the weight of the parathyroid glands resected for secondary hyperparathyroidism. The subjects studied were 11 patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism caused by chronic renal failure. The pre- and post-operative differences in the plasma C-PTH levels and plasma M-PTH levels were significantly correlated with the weight of the resected parathyroid glands (p<0.001 for both), but there was no correlation between the differences in the levels of intact PTH and the weight of the resected parathyroid glands. From these relationships we estimated the weight of the residual parathyroid gland after parathyroidectomy using the levels of each PTH. All patients in whom the residual parathyroid gland was estimated to be heavy based on the levels of M-PTH showed recurrence of hyperparathyroidism after the parathyroidectomy. We therefore found that estimation of the weight of the parathyroid glands from the levels of M-PTH is both possible and useful.     

Sequential Changes in Plasma Intact and Whole Parathyroid Hormone Levels during Parathyroidectomy for Secondary Hyperparathyroidism

Most commercial assays for intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) cross-react with non-PTH1-84 fragments (likely to be PTH7-84). We aimed to evaluate a whole PTH assay that measured only PTH1-84 by comparing it with an assay measuring iPTH levels during parathyroidectomy in secondary hyperparathyroidism (HPT). Twenty-eight patients with secondary HPT who underwent total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation served as subjects. Blood samples for postoperative assay were drawn after anesthesia; immediately prior to excision of the last parathyroid gland; and at 5, 10, and 15 minutes after excision. The PTH7-84 level was calculated by subtracting the whole PTH value from the iPTH value. Plasma whole PTH decreased more rapidly than iPTH after parathyroidectomy (p < 0.0001). PTH levels that decreased by 50% or more from levels prior to excision to 10 minutes after excision were used to predict successful parathyroidectomy; decreases in whole PTH substantiated curative surgery for all patients without introducing false-positive and false-negative results. iPTH levels decreased by at least 50% in only 16 patients at 10 minutes after excision without false-positive results. Out of 11 cases in which iPTH decreased less than 50%, two were true-negatives and nine were false-negatives. Decreases in whole PTH levels more accurately reflect surgical outcome than do decreases in iPTH levels during parathyroidectomy in secondary HPT patients. Even though the quick iPTH assay is used infrequently during surgery for secondary HPT, our results suggest that a quick whole PTH assay may be more useful than the iPTH assay currently used in parathyroidectomy procedures for secondary HPT.     

Subtotal versus total parathyroidectomy with forearm autograft for secondary hyperparathyroidism in chronic renal failure.

Forty-three patients with chronic renal failure and secondary hyperparathyroidism underwent parathyroidectomy; 20 of the 43 underwent subtotal parathyroidectomy (Group A) and 23 patients underwent total parathyroidectomy and parathyroid autotransplant in the forearm (Group B). Postoperative clinical improvement was similar in both groups. In the immediate postoperative period eight patients in Group A who had severe bone changes and 21 patients in Group B needed supplemental calcium administration. The grafted tissues in all cases functioned well; reimplantation of the cryopreserved parathyroid tissues was unnecessary. One case in each group showed a recurrence. One patient in Group A was submitted to reexploration of the neck with a lateral approach. The other patient in Group B underwent excisions of the transplanted parathyroid tissues on three separate occasions under local anesthesia. The second operation was definitely easier and safer to manage after a total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation to the forearm.     

Prospective evaluation of symptom responses to successful operation for mild-moderate primary hyperparathyroidism.

BACKGROUND: Parathyroidectomy is claimed to strongly improve the hypercalcemic symptoms in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT). The object of this study was to register the patients own experience of symptom changes in response to successful parathyroid surgery. METHODS: Material one. 44 HPT patients filled in a questionnaire consisting of 8 visual analogue scales referring to "typical" hypercalcemic symptoms before as well as 2 and 12 months after neck surgery. Their results were compared with those obtained from an age- and sex-matched group of patients undergoing surgery for non-toxic thyroid disease. Material two. 25 elderly women with mild-moderate HPT were followed more closely up to 3 years after neck surgery with the same type of questionnaire. RESULTS: HPT patients expressed significantly more of fatigue, muscular weakness, impaired memory, thirst and polyuria than patients with non-toxic thyroid disorders. These differences were eliminated 2 months after surgery. The pattern of response to parathyroidectomy was similar for most symptoms: an impressive improvement after 2 months and then a gradual return towards the preoperative value. However, the response was still significant for fatigue, weakness, thirst, polyuria and inactivity after 1 year. The effect of normalization of serum calcium on symptom scoring varied considerably between different individuals and also between different symptoms in the same individual. The elderly women responded in a similar biphasic way but their improvements were less pronounced. CONCLUSIONS: HPT patients experience significant improvements of most "hypercalcemic" symtoms after successful parathyroidectomy, but the effects are transient and vary considerably between different individuals.     

The role of intraoperative parathyroid hormone testing in patients with tertiary hyperparathyroidism after renal transplantation

BACKGROUND: Intraoperative parathyroid hormone (PTH) testing has been shown to accurately define adequacy of parathyroid resection in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) and alters the operative management in 10% to 15% of cases. However, the benefit of this technique in patients with tertiary HPT after renal transplantation undergoing parathyroidectomy is unclear. METHODS: Intraoperative PTH was measured in 32 consecutive patients undergoing parathyroidectomy for tertiary HPT after renal transplantation between March 2001 and November 2004 by using the Elecsys assay at baseline and, subsequently, 5, 10, and 15 minutes after curative resection. The outcomes of these patients were evaluated. RESULTS: All patients were cured after surgery. Of the 32 patients, 29 were found to have parathyroid hyperplasia, while 1 had a single adenoma and 2 had double adenomas. The average drop in intraoperative PTH levels after curative resection was 69 +/- 3.5% at 5 min., 77 +/- 2.3% at 10 minutes, and 83 +/- 3.4% at 15 minutes. PTH testing changed the intraoperative management in 5 (16%) patients. One patient with a single adenoma and 2 patients with double adenomas had a >50% drop at 10 minutes. after excision; therefore, the operation was terminated without further resection. Two patients did not have a >50% drop at 10 minutes after 3.5 gland resection. These patients were explored further, and additional supernumerary parathyroid glands were identified and resected. After resection of these additional glands, the PTH fell by >50%, indicating cure. CONCLUSIONS: In patients undergoing parathyroidectomy for tertiary HPT after renal transplantation, a decrease in intraoperative PTH levels >50% at 10 minutes after completion of the operation indicated adequate resection. Furthermore, intraoperative PTH testing altered the operative management in 16% of patients. Therefore, similar to its role in patients with primary HPT, intraoperative PTH testing appears to play an equally important role in the management of patients with tertiary HPT undergoing parathyroidectomy.     

Recurrent secondary hyperparathyroidism due to implanted parathyroid tissue: a case report

Hyperparathyroidism is a common complication of chronic renal failure. Although many patients can be managed by conservative measures, surgery is sometimes necessary. One of two operations can be performed: subtotal parathyroidectomy or total parathyroidectomy with reimplantation of parathyroid tissue into muscle. A case is presented of a patient who underwent the first and then the second of these procedures for recurrent hyperparathyroidism. A further recurrence was found to be caused by the implanted parathyroid tissue in a forearm muscle, requiring a third procedure for control of the disorder.     

Parathyroid metabolism after operative treatment of hypercalcemic (primary) hyperparathyroidism

Parathyroidectomy is usually followed by a decrease in serum calcium, a lessening of symptoms, and a normocalcemic state that continues for years. Evaluation of parathyroid gland function after parathyroidectomy over a protracted period showed a continued hypersecretory state in many normocalcemic patients and is reported here for the first time. Patients identified with parathyroid hyperplasia (more than one gland excised) and patients who later developed mild renal failure were excluded. Seventy-seven patients undergoing parathyroidectomy with only one enlarged gland removed and the other normal-sized glands viewed or examined by biopsy were followed up from 5 to 16 years. Two patients developed recurrent hypercalcemia at 4 and 9 years after surgery. Seventy-five patients are considered "cured" and have normal serum calcium values. However, 28 (37%) of these normocalcemic patients have persistent elevations of parathyroid hormone. This increased parathyroid gland function suggests a continuing stimulation of the remaining glands. The rarity of clinical recurrence may be related to effective adaptations that prevent overt hypercalcemia. Many parathyroid adenomas appear to represent nonneoplastic disease.     

Surgical management of persistence or recurrence after subtotal parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism.

(1) In an experience with 44 patients requiring subtotal parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism due to multiple gland involvement, persistence was identified in 3 patients and recurrence in 3, resulting in a failure rate of 14 per cent. (2) The development of chronic renal insufficiency secondary to hyperparathyroidism appears to be an aggravating factor in the failure of subtotal parathyroidectomy to control hypercalcemia in such cases. An associated MEN-1 syndrome may possibly also be a predisposing factor. (3) Overlooked supernumerary hyperfunctioning parathyroid glands may be the cause of persistent hypercalcemia. (4) If reoperation is performed, ultrasonography of the neck and computerized tomography of the mediastinum are justified preoperatively for localization studies. (5) If hyperplasia of the preserved remnant of parathyroid is the only explanation for failure of subtotal parathyroidectomy, its removal is justified with autotransplantation of parathyroid tissue and freezing of additional tissue for possible future use. (6) The presence of moderate or severe chronic renal insufficiency, related to primary hyperparathyroidism, appears to justify total parathyroidectomy with autotransplantation for primary hyperparathyroidism due to multiple gland involvement. (7) Periodic reevaluation is indicated for all patients after operation, especially subtotal parathyroidectomy, for primary hyperparathyroidism due to multiple gland involvement. If mild or borderline hypercalcemia persists or recurs, close follow-up study is indicated.